Steel Rose
by Agent O'Brian
Summary: JackChloe. Season 56 AU. A series of events draws Jack and Chloe into a struggle against old enemies. Chapter 5 now up.
1. Hostage

Chapter 1

_Jack raced down the narrow corridors of CTU's lower levels, desperate to catch up with Nina before she escaped again._ I don't believe this. She was barely alive. How could she escape?_ He scowled at himself. _This is Nina we're talking about. She's an expert at this. How could Tony have been so stupid? He knows how she works. He should have known she'd try something.

_Shaking his head to clear it, Jack continued his pursuit, finally stopping outside the primary server room. He heard voices inside, his heart beating faster as he recognized the voice of Kim. She had cornered Nina and was threatening to kill her. Jack looked in, watching in horror as Kim raised her weapon to shoot Nina, her hands trembling. Nina responded by raising her own weapon._

No. She is not killing my daughter._ Jack pointed his weapon and fired, his shot hitting its mark as Nina went down. He moved in, telling Kim to leave the room before gazing down at Nina. Her calm demeanor was long gone, replaced by fear and desperation._ She doesn't know anything else. I can see it.

_"You don't have any more useful information, do you, Nina?" he asked._

_"I do" she replied, her voice faint from blood loss. Jack glanced down to see her reaching for the weapon she had dropped._

This ends now. _"No, you don't" he told her, moving to block the camera from view. He quickly pointed his weapon to shoot, but stopped just before he pulled the trigger. His hand shook slightly, and he brought up his other hand for support. But still he couldn't pull the trigger._

_"What are you waiting for, Jack?" Nina called out. "Do it. You've won, now come on."_

_Jack stared at her._ What the hell am I doing? This is what I've been dreaming about ever since she killed my wife. Why can't I kill her?_ He dropped his arm, pointing his weapon at the floor._ If I kill her now, I'll be no better than she is.

_"You're not going to kill me?"_

_Jack holstered his weapon. "Killing you... is not going to bring Teri back. And I'm not a murderer like you." He turned Nina on her back, cuffing her hands behind her. "No, Nina. You're not getting out of this so easily." He pulled out his walkie. "This is Bauer. Nina Myers has been apprehended. Send security to Alpha server immediately." Jack pulled Nina up. "But if you try and escape again, I will kill you."_

2424242424

"Jack!"

Jack was snapped out of his memory by Tony calling out to him. He shook his head. "I- I'm sorry, what were you talking about?"

Tony resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I wanted to see if you had taken care of that problem I talked to you about the other day."

Jack nodded. "I put Mueller on it. He said he'd have it fixed by the end of the day." He frowned. "Was there anything else?"

"No. Most of the major protocols are being handled by our replacements. The final protocol shifts are going into effect tomorrow. Once that's done, we're out of here for good."

"Good." Jack looked past Tony and out into the bullpen, his eyes resting on the woman sitting at the central station. He smiled slightly as Chloe slowly turned to meet his gaze, her irritated demeanor fading rapidly. She returned his smile, then scowled as her phone rang, and she turned away to answer it.

"Well?"

Jack stared at Tony in confusion. "Well, what?"

"Are you going to ask her?"

"Yes, I am. Soon."

"When, Jack? Come on, you've been putting it off long enough."

Jack glared at Tony. "I have not been putting it off, Tony. I've just been waiting until we're done with CTU for good. I want everything to be perfect. That's why I'm going to ask her in a couple of days, after we get out of here."

"Good." Tony pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. "Will this help?"

Jack grabbed the paper out of his hands, scanning it briefly. "The Black Rock Gardens? How did you-"

"Bill took care of it. When he found out what you were planning, he set everything up. You know Chloe loves that place. She'll say yes."

Jack grinned. "Thank you, Tony." He looked down, his grin fading. "It almost seems too good to be true."

"I know what you mean." Tony turned around as Chloe burst into Jack's office, and Jack quickly stuffed the paper he was holding in his desk. "What's going on, Chloe?"

"Jack, we have a problem. Nina Myers is out of prison."

"What?" Jack felt his heart beat faster. "What happened?"

"We don't have all the details yet. The only thing we know is that someone broke her out." Chloe turned to leave. "Mr. Buchanan wants to talk to you. I'll let you know if anything else comes in."

Jack struggled to control his rapidly beating heart. "Thank you, Chloe." She left, and Jack sank down into his chair. _I don't believe this. How the hell could this happen? I knew I should have killed her when I had the chance._

"Jack." Jack stared at Tony. "Jack, I know what you're thinking. Don't. I know you hate Nina, but think about it. We're going to be leaving this place for good tomorrow." Tony put his hand on Jack's shoulder. "Do me a favor. If we can't find Nina by the end of tomorrow, don't go looking for her on your own. If she comes after you, then you can take care of her. But if she doesn't, then leave her."

"Dammit, Tony, she killed my wife. She would have killed my daughter." His fist tightened. "I should have killed her when I had the chance."

"I know what she did, Jack. I was there, remember? You didn't kill her because you knew it was wrong." Tony dropped his hand as Jack's phone rang. "I'll see what I can find out."

Jack watched him leave, then picked up his phone. "This is Bauer."

"Jack, it's Bill. I assume Chloe told you about Nina Myers."

"Yes, she did" Jack replied shortly. "I'm going to find her, Bill. What's the problem?"

"Look, Jack- I'm going to get right to the point. I know about your history with Myers. And we have orders to bring her in alive."

Jack frowned. "Bill, what are you getting at?"

"I need you to stand down on this one."

"You can't be serious" Jack replied. "Bill, I know her better than anyone else here. I can guarantee you won't be able to find Nina if you don't let me in on this."

"This isn't my call." Bill sighed. "Jack, I know you want to help, but this is an order straight from Division. You, Tony, and Chloe are out of this."

"Bill, you cannot pull your best people off of this, and expect to find her." Jack paused. "Please let us in on this. At least let me help run tactical from here."

"...I'm sorry, Jack. I can't."

"Fine. Then I'll do this without CTU." Jack slammed down the phone and reached for his weapon. _I'll find her, and I'm going to finish the job this time._ He stood up and walked down to the main floor, where he was accosted by a handful of security. "I'm sorry, Agent Bauer, but Mr. Buchanan has ordered us to take you to Holding."

"Get out of my way" Jack snarled, lashing out at one of the guards. He went down in a heap, joined a minute later by Jack, who was being subdued by the other guards. They picked him up and marched him off the floor, stopping in front of Holding Room 1. Jack was led inside and sat down, his arms cuffed firmly behind his back. _They can't keep me locked up forever. Once I get out of here, Nina's mine._

2424242424

Jack shifted his arms, which were growing stiff from being locked behind his back. He had been kept in Holding for over a day, save for a couple of trips to the bathroom, and he was growing restless. Chloe had stopped by earlier to let him know they were still looking for Nina, and Bill was sending her and Tony home, but other than that, he was left alone.

He looked up as the door opened, and Bill walked in, motioning for the guard to release Jack. Jack rubbed his sore wrists, looking at Bill expectantly.

"I'm sorry about this, Jack" Bill said quietly.

"So am I." Jack stood up. "Am I free to go?"

"Yes." Jack began to walk past Bill, but was stopped by the CTU leader. "Jack... we're going to find her."

"I know." Jack walked out of Holding, his head bent down to avoid the stares of his now-former colleagues as he walked through the bullpen and out the door. The guard at the check-out station stopped him. "Agent Bauer, we need your access codes and your gun."

Jack stared at the guard, then pulled out his badge and gun, dropping them on the desk in disgust before walking out of the building and climbing into his car. He sat for a minute, then fired up the engine, pulling out quickly. Once the CTU building was out of sight, he pulled out his phone, dialing Chloe's number. He frowned as her voicemail came up. _Chloe always has her phone on._ He tried her number again, but got her voicemail again. "Chloe, it's Jack. I need you to call me back as soon as possible. It's important." He hung up and called Tony. "Tony, it's Jack."

"Jack. Bill said you had been released."

"Yeah, I'm out of CTU. Listen, Tony, do you know where Chloe is? I tried to call her, but she wasn't answering."

"No, I haven't spoken to her since we left CTU a few hours ago. Why?"

Jack shifted into the next lane. "I need her help."

"Oh, I see" Tony replied. "You still want to go after Nina."

"Yes. I made the mistake of not finishing the job when I had the chance. This time, she's not getting away. And once Nina's gone, I'm going to ask Chloe to marry me."

Tony was about to respond, but his attention was diverted to the TV he had on. His heart skipped a beat by what he saw.

"Tony, you still there?"

Tony shook his head. "Jack..."

"What?"

"...I think we found Chloe."

"Where is she?" Jack asked.

"Downtown. The old Enterprise building."

Jack was confused. "What is she doing there?" Tony didn't reply. "What is it, Tony?"

"...Nina has her hostage."

2424242424

Jack elbowed his way through the crowd gathered outside the abandoned building, his eyes scanning for any sign of Chloe or Nina. _This is all my fault. If I had just killed Nina back then, Chloe would be safe now._

"Ms. Myers, talk to us" the lieutenant on duty called out to Nina.

"There's nothing to talk about. I want to speak to President Daniels. If you don't get him on the phone, I will kill her" Nina replied. "If you or any of your men come any closer, I will take this whole building down."

Jack spotted a lone officer on the edge of the crowd. _Perfect._ Sneaking up behind him, Jack put him in a sleeper hold and dragged him out of sight. Taking the officer's weapon, he slowly made his way towards the building.

"Hey! Stop right there!"

Jack cursed as he was spotted by a SWAT team. He ducked to avoid their shots, then bolted down the closest alley, doubling back to try and lose them. He was halfway out when Nina's voice sounded.

"I told you not to come any closer! Now this woman's blood is on your hands!"

Jack sprinted towards the building, but was knocked off his feet by a thunderous shockwave as the building collapsed. His head struck the pavement, and he slipped into unconsciousness.

2424242424

Jack felt a dull throbbing in his head as he was snapped back to consciousness. He began to sit up, but was forced back down by a heavyset medic. "Take it easy, sir."

"What the hell happened?" Jack asked. He looked around curiously. "Where am I?"

"St. Thomas. You were found outside the building that collapsed two days ago, sir."

"2 days?" Jack looked up at the medic. "Did... they find anybody else?"

The medic shook his head. "I'm sorry, sir. I can't release that information."

Jack grabbed his arm to keep him from leaving. "Please, sir. A friend of mine was in that building. I need to know if she made it out okay."

The medic gazed at him, then wrenched his arm free. "What was her name?"

"Chloe O'Brian."

The medic pulled out his PDA, scanning through it. He stopped, read the screen for a minute, then put it away, looking back at Jack. "They pulled a body out of the wreckage last night. A man named Bill Buchanan ID'd the body as Ms. O'Brian a couple hours ago. I'm sorry, sir. She didn't make it."

_No. No, this can't be happening._ Jack watched the medic leave, then broke down. _I'm so sorry, Chloe. This is all my fault._


	2. Prime Directive

Chapter 2

_Three years later..._

The sun was slowly rising on yet another day in LA, but the solitary figure paid no attention as he stared out the window, sleep having eluded him for yet another night. Jack finally turned away from the window with a loud sigh and sat down on the floor, pulling his knees up and wrapping his arms around them.

A faint growl reached his ears, a reminder that he hadn't eaten in some time, but Jack made no move to satisfy his hunger. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a worn picture of the woman he loved, staring at it for long minutes. _I miss you, Chloe. I miss you so much._

His fingers dropped down to the weapon he carried, the temptation to end his pain growing. Jack pulled the weapon out, placing it against his temple, steeling himself for the fatal shot. He stopped as he heard Chloe's voice coming back to him.

_"Jack, what are you doing?"_

_"I'm done. I can't do this anymore, Chloe."_

_"That's not true. Besides, you still have Kim. You still have me."_

_"Kim wants nothing to do with me."_

_"Jack... don't. Please."_

_"Chloe, I almost lost you today."_

_"But you didn't. Look, Jack, promise me one thing- if anything ever happens to me or Kim, you'll keep on living. Promise me."_

Jack lowered his weapon hastily. _I made a promise to Chloe. She'd never forgive me if I broke that promise._ He stuck the weapon back in its holster and turned his attention back to the picture he held. _I'm sorry, Chloe. I couldn't save you. It's my fault you're gone. But I'm not going to break the promise I made._

Jack jumped as he heard a soft knock on the door, and Tony walked in. "Hey, Jack."

Jack didn't respond, but Tony wasn't expecting him to. _He hasn't said a word since Chloe's funeral._

Tony sat down next to Jack, putting his hand on his shoulder. "Jack, I know you're in there somewhere. And I'm not giving up until you come back. Just talk to me."

Jack gave no indication that he had heard what Tony had told him, his focus completely on the picture of Chloe he held onto.

"Jack, I know it's hard. I know how you feel. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss Michelle. But Chloe wouldn't want you to live like this. You still have a life. Do you want to waste that life?"

Jack jerked away from Tony and got up, walking into his bedroom and slamming the door behind him. Tony stood up, shaking his head, then walked out, pulling out his phone. "Bill, it's Tony. I'm at Jack's."

"How is he, Tony?"

"He's getting worse, Bill. I've never seen him like this, not even when his wife was killed. He's lost his way, his... will to live. I don't think anything can help him now."

Bill sighed. "I know." He pulled a paper out of the file he had just been given, his eyes narrowing as he read it. "Look, Tony, can you do me a favor?"

"What?"

"Stay with Jack for a while."

Tony was confused. "Why? What are you doing, Bill?"

"Just trust me. Tony, you know I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important."

Tony scowled. "Fine. But I don't know what good it's gonna do." He hung up before Bill could reply and walked back into Jack's house, sitting outside the bedroom. "Jack... if you want to talk, I'm right outside." Tony sat back to wait, and soon found himself falling asleep.

2424242424

A loud bang woke Tony up from his slumber, and he looked up to see agents dressed in black running towards him. "What the hell's going on here?"

The lead agent pointed his weapon at Tony. "Agent Almeida, where's Agent Bauer?"

_What is this? _"Who are you guys?"

"Bill Buchanan sent us. You and Agent Bauer are to come with us immediately."

Tony glared at him. "I'm not going anywhere unless you tell me right now what's going on."

"That wasn't a request" the agent replied, signaling to his men, who overwhelmed Tony and cuffed him. "Now where is Agent Bauer?"

"...He's in the bedroom" Tony said, motioning to the room. Three agents busted in, returning a minute later with Jack, who wasn't even struggling. "Let's go."

"Are you taking us back to CTU?"

"No, we're not."

"Then what are you doing?"

"Mr. Buchanan will explain what's going on when we arrive. Now let's go."

2424242424

Jack blinked as the blindfold was pulled away, and he found himself being uncuffed. He caught Tony out of the corner of his eye, giving him a questioning look, then turned as the door to the room they were in opened. Bill walked in, dismissing the guards.

"What the hell are you doing, Bill?" Tony snapped at him once the guards save one had left. "Why have you arrested us?"

"I'm sorry about all the secrecy" Bill replied, "but it was absolutely necessary. I'll tell you everything you need to know in a few minutes."

"No, Bill. Tell us now. Where are we?"

"...This is Outpost Charlie, the main substation for Prime Directive."

Tony was confused. "I've never heard of Prime Directive."

Bill shook his head. "No, you wouldn't have. Only a few individuals outside of this organization have even heard of it. Not even the president knows of our existence."

"Okay, so what are we doing here?"

"Tony, Jack... Chloe's still alive."

Tony sank back into his chair. _Chloe's alive?_ He glanced over at Jack, who had gone pale, but gave no other indication he had heard what Bill had told them. "That's impossible, Bill" he finally choked out. "You know she died 3 years ago. Nina killed her. You even ID'd her body."

"No, Tony. Her death was staged by agents working for this organization. The body I identified as hers was someone else. Chloe's been here the last 3 years, working for me."

"...I don't understand, Bill. Why? Why would you need to stage her death?"

Bill was about to reply, but an soft whisper cut him off. Jack was trying to speak, his voice hoarse from 3 years of disuse. Bill handed him a bottle of water, and Jack took a few drinks before finally speaking. "Chloe... where is she?" he whispered.

"She's in the room next door."

"I want to see her. Now."

"Of course. Follow me." Bill turned to Tony. "We've prepared rooms for the two of you. One of the guards will show you to your quarters." Tony followed the single guard out of the room. Once he was gone, Bill motioned for Jack to follow him, punching his code into the other door and opening it. Jack stepped through after Bill, following him down the narrow corridor, and stopped in front of another door. Bill opened it, then stepped aside. "She's in there, Jack."

Jack took a deep breath, then stepped inside, his heart beating furiously as he heard a familiar voice reach his ears.

"No, Steve, don't do it."

"Because I told you not to, that's why."

"Look, Steve, I am second in command of this substation, and only Bill can override my orders. Now I am ordering you to stop what you're doing."

"Fine. Take it up with Bill. He'll tell you the exact same thing I'm telling you." She clicked off her comm unit in disgust. "Jackass."

"Chloe." Chloe stiffened as she heard Jack call out to her. She slowly got up from her computer and walked towards him, stepping into the single light in the otherwise darkened room. Jack gasped as her took her in for the first time in 3 years. _She's... really alive._ He took a tentative step forward, before Chloe flung himself into his arms, her body shaking.

"Chloe..."

"Jack, I'm so sorry" she whispered. "I never meant to hurt you like this."

"Chloe, I..." Jack was unable to respond further before his emotions overwhelmed him, and he passed out in Chloe's arms.

2424242424

Jack jerked out of his slumber, taking a look around. He was back in the conference room. Bill and Tony were standing over him, looking concerned, and Chloe was on the other side of the room, biting her nail. Jack slowly sat up, rubbing his head.

"Take it easy, Jack" Bill said softly. "You passed out."

Jack groaned, then shot a glare at Bill. "What is going on here, Bill?" he growled.

"I said I would tell you two everything. Now's the time." He gestured to the long table. "Sit down."

Jack and Tony both sat down, and Chloe moved over to the other side, joining Bill. He stared at the two men across from him, then spoke. "Jack, Tony, the reason why you two were brought in is because we're in the middle of an operation, and we want you two to help finish the job."

"What operation?" Tony asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Capturing this man" Chloe replied, bringing up a head shot on the monitor.

"Who is he?"

"His name is Jonathan Liddy" Bill explained. "He's the head of an organization known as Steel Rose. Their goal is to control this country by whatever means they deem necessary. For the last 15 years, Prime Directive has been working to dismantle Steel Rose, and bring Liddy to justice."

"Justice for what?"

"Treason against this country. Liddy and Steel Rose have been involved in one way or another with almost every major terrorist attack against this country over the last 20 years."

Jack merely stared at Liddy's profile. "What do you want us to do?" he snapped, his tone indicating he had no interest in helping out.

"Help us finish this operation." Bill walked over to Jack, staring down at him. "Jack... no matter what you decide to do, no one's going to hold it against you. You can turn us down, and go on with your life with no problems. But we would like your help with this."

Jack stood up. "...I'll think about it. But before I make my decision, I need to talk to Chloe alone. Give us some space, please."

"Fine." Bill led Tony out of the room, leaving Jack alone with Chloe. She squirmed under his angry stare. "Jack, I know you're probably really angry at me, but-"

Jack raised his hand, cutting her off. "How long have you been playing me, Chloe?"

"Playing you?" Chloe was confused. "Jack, I haven't been playing you."

"Dammit, Chloe, you led me to believe you were dead! I spent the last 3 years grieving for you!"

"I know" she said quietly.

"Why didn't you tell me you were alive?"

"I wanted to, Jack, but I couldn't. If you found out I was alive, so would they. This operation would have been jeopardized. I would have been killed for sure."

Jack was growing madder. "I don't care about this operation, Chloe! You lied to me!"

Chloe got up in his face. "Yes, I lied to you, Jack! I had to! I knew what I was getting into when Prime Directive recruited me for this operation! Do you think I wanted to lie to you? No! But my work here was too important!" She stepped back, breathing heavily. "I thought you of all people would understand that."

"This is different!"

"How?! How is me pretending to be dead any different than you pretending to be dead?! It's not, and you know it! Now what do you want from me?!"

Jack stepped back, still glaring. He let out a shaky breath. "I want the truth, Chloe. Everything."

Chloe nodded. "Fine." She sat down. "What do you want to know?"

"How long have you been working for this place? Just the last 3 years?"

"No. I've been working for Prime Directive ever since the day you came back to Los Angeles from DC. A couple hours after I resigned that day, I was contacted by a man named Hoyle. He had heard about what I had done- you know, helping you illegally, and all that- and he wanted me to come work for Prime Directive. I didn't really have any other options on the table at that time, Jack, so I said yes. Then Michelle called me back into CTU, supposedly just for the day. When Bill asked me to stay at the end of the day, he didn't tell me he too was working for Prime Directive. I didn't find out for almost a year."

"The day I went to Chicago to warn you that someone might have known you were still alive, I... I thought I had all my bases covered. But apparently I didn't."

"What are you talking about?" Jack asked.

"I mean that Steel Rose has had their eye on you for years, Jack. You've killed more Steel Rose operatives over the years than anyone we've got here, and you've managed to ruin their plans on more than one occasion. They never believed you were dead, and they knew that I most likely knew where you were hiding. They followed me to Chicago. That's how they knew for sure you were alive."

"A few days after I got back to LA, Bill contacted me. He told me then that he was also working for Prime Directive, and that Steel Rose had found out I was as well. They knew that if they could take me out, it could potentially cripple our operation. But I couldn't go underground yet. You still needed to be able to contact me in case someone else found out you were still alive."

Chloe paused, taking a drink of water. She cleared her throat and continued. "The day I called you out of hiding, that whole mess with Logan- all of it was a Steel Rose operation. Bierko and his men were just pawns for Steel Rose's plans. They never intended for that nerve gas to get out of the country. It was always going to be used against America- and Prime Directive in particular. They used Bierko to get into CTU, knowing he would try to kill everyone in the building, including Bill and me. Getting rid of two top Prime Directive operatives would have been a major victory for them. Obviously, it failed, thanks to Lynn."

Jack leaned back in his chair, mulling over what Chloe had told him. "So... if they knew you survived, why didn't they try and take you out?"

"After we brought down Logan, Bill and I knew we would have to be more careful in the future. Steel Rose had lost their best opportunity to take us out, and we did our best to make sure they wouldn't get another one." She pulled a small device out of her pocket. "All Steel Rose operatives have trackers planted on them at all times. This device can detect those trackers. Anyone wearing a tracking device comes within 1000 feet of us" she pressed a button, causing the device to sound loudly "And it goes off. Bill's idea."

"It worked for a couple years. They couldn't get close enough to us to even attempt killing us. We were able to do our jobs without worrying about being killed. We had enough to worry about at the time. Between our CTU duties, the hunt for Liddy, and... trying to get you out of China, it was... exhausting, to say the least. I didn't know how much longer I would be able to do it, Jack. But fortunately you got out of China. That was one of the best days of my life, rescuing you from that prison. And... getting you out also exposed some of Liddy's inner circle. We were so close to getting him. But..."

"What happened?"

Chloe sighed. "We know that Steel Rose has their people in every corner of the government. A couple months before I went underground, we found out that CTU was going to be disbanded by the government. The head of the NSA, Eric Rayburn, he's one of them. He was the one that ordered CTU shut down. We also learned that once CTU was gone, Steel Rose operatives would try to take us out. And they had learned about those" she motioned to the device, "so they would be useless. Bill and I would be totally exposed. That's when we decided that the best way for me to continue my work was to stage my death. And it worked. Steel Rose thinks I'm dead."

Jack ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't understand. Why would they go to all that trouble just to kill you and Bill?"

Chloe rubbed her hands nervously. "Because Bill is the second in command of Prime Directive, and I'm right below him. And even if we weren't, my knowledge of computers is enough to make me a target."

"Chloe..." Jack frowned as he thought of something Chloe had not mentioned. "How did you get away from Nina?"

"What?"

"Nina. She had you hostage. How did you get away from her? Did you kill her?"

Chloe shook her head. "I didn't need to get away from her."

"What do you mean?"

"Jack... Nina's alive. She's working for us."


	3. Deception

Chapter 3

Jack slowly sank down into his chair as Chloe's words ran through his mind. _Nina's alive? She's working for Bill and Chloe? She killed my wife, betrayed this country, and they're working with her?_ "Why?" he finally asked. "Why are you working with her? She's evil. She killed my wife."

"I know what Nina's done, but-"

"But nothing" Jack retorted, cutting Chloe off with a wave of his hand, and standing up. "Where is she?"

Chloe shook her head. "I can't tell you. Not until you calm down."

"Damnit, Chloe! You are working with a traitor to this country!" He got in her face, his glare causing her to pale. "What the hell are you thinking?!"

"Jack!" Jack turned to see Bill standing in the doorway, Tony and a half dozen security guards right behind him. "Back off her!"

Jack stepped back from Chloe and sat down, his anger showing clearly.

"Chloe, are you all right?" Bill asked, going over to her.

She shook him off. "I'm fine, Bill. Jack just got a little upset."

"A little upset?" Jack spat out. "You're working with a traitor!"

Bill glanced over at Chloe. "Chloe, come with me." She followed him out of the room. "What did you tell him?"

"...The truth. He wanted to know why I lied to him, why I staged my death, all of it. I told him as much as I could."

"Including Nina being alive."

She looked down. "Yeah."

"Chloe, I thought I told you not to tell him about Nina until later."

"I wasn't going to, but he figured it out, Bill." She looked through the glass door into the conference room. Jack was pacing angrily, and Tony was attempting to calm him down. "He's not going to help us, is he?"

"I have no idea" Bill admitted. He placed his hand on Chloe's shoulder, causing her to relax. "At the very least, we owe Jack an explanation. Come on." Bill led Chloe back into the conference room. Jack stopped pacing, and he and Tony both stared expectantly at Bill. "Are you going to tell us what's going on here, Bill?" Tony asked. "Why is Nina Myers working with you? You know what she's done."

Bill shared a quick look with Chloe before speaking. "I'm going to tell you the truth, but then I need you two to decide whether or not you're going to help us. All right?" Tony and Jack both agreed. "The truth is that... Nina Myers has been secretly working for Prime Directive for almost 15 years. She and I were recruited around the same time by the head of Prime Directive. A few months after we were brought in, he entrusted me with gathering high value intel on Steel Rose's top operatives. We needed to know everything about Liddy's closest allies, information that could only be obtained by someone who could get close enough to them. I approached Nina, and asked her to be that someone. She agreed."

"From that point on, Nina spent every moment she could getting in with every known terrorist cell, passing herself off as a mercenary. And it worked. For years she was able to get close to some of Steel Rose's highest operatives, passing any information she could get back to us." He nodded to Chloe, who brought up a series of headshots on the monitor. "This is Colin O'Reilly, the former head of the FBI, Harry Jackson, Chief of Staff to Vice President Kingston, and Marcus Avery, former head of the Stanton Institute. All 3 of these men were high ranking Steel Rose operatives. Thanks to Nina's intelligence gathering, we were able to bring them to justice. Everything was going well... until the situation with the Drazens."

Jack merely stared at Bill, his expression neutral. "What about the Drazens?"

Bill dropped his head for a second. "That wasn't supposed to happen, Jack."

"What do you mean, it wasn't supposed to happen?" Jack snapped.

"Nina had gotten in with a cell operating in Germany. She found out that Victor Drazen had been tipped off about you and your team going to kill him." Chloe brought up another headshot, and Jack stared at the screen in shock. "Olsen?"

"Yes. Captain Joshua Olsen, the last man you recruited for Operation Nightfall, and a Steel Rose informant. He also survived the operation. Olsen was the one who set Nina up with the Drazens. He provided them with all the details of Nightfall."

"That's how they knew David Palmer was the one who authorized it" Tony stated.

"That's right. When Nina found out what the Drazens were planning, she informed me right away. We knew that Drazen had ties to over half a dozen Steel Rose operations, and we couldn't risk losing our only link to them. Commander Rogers, the former head of this substation, gave the order to allow Palmer to be assassinated."

Jack slammed his hand down on the table, standing up quickly. "Damnit, Bill! How the hell could you agree to that?!"

"Jack, calm down" Chloe replied, going over to him and gingerly putting her hand on his shoulder. Jack felt his anger fade slightly at her touch, and he slowly sat down.

"I didn't agree to it, Jack" Bill said quietly. "I told Nina to do whatever she could to stop the assassination. It was her job to help CTU out whenever she could, while still playing her part with the Drazens. But things went seriously wrong that day."

"Seriously wrong?" Jack spat out. "How?"

"For starters, Jamey Farrell. She was involved even more than Nina was aware of at first. Somehow she found out about Nina's work with Prime Directive. Jack, she could have told the Drazens everything she knew had Nina not killed her. Your wife and daughter would have been killed for sure."

"What about my wife? If Nina was as loyal to this country as you say she is, why did she kill my wife?"

Bill looked away, signaling for Chloe to take over. "Nina was under orders from Rogers to do whatever she had to to maintain her cover with Drazen and his organization. When you found out someone in CTU was working for them, Rogers told her to have you taken out. That's why she... told you Kim was dead, so you would get yourself killed. But they all underestimated you, Jack. When you survived, Nina contacted our substation in Germany, and they arranged for her extraction. She didn't expect Teri to come looking for her. When Rogers found out about Teri, he ordered Nina to kill her, and..."

"And she did it" Jack finished.

"Yeah."

"I don't get it" Tony said. "What about the other things she's done? She sold CTU's schematics to Joseph Wald. She knew about the nuke that Second Wave had brought into this country."

"Nina only sold Wald CTU's schematics because of Commander Rogers" Bill answered. "Those two were the only ones who knew anything about it. His intention was to use them to get to Wald, and eventually, to who was backing him. Before they could let us in on what they were planning, however, Nina was arrested, and Rogers was killed. We didn't find out what she had done until CTU did."

"What about the virus?"

"After Nina was exiled to North Africa, she reestablished contact with us, and resumed her work. Then we found out about Amador and the virus. The buyers Nina was going to be working for weren't on our radar, but she knew if that they got ahold of that virus, it would destroy this country. The plan was for her to get the virus from Amador, then deliver it to us to be destroyed."

"When you showed up in Mexico, Jack, everything changed. None of us knew that you were involved in your own sting operation."

"That was the point" Jack replied. "Tony, Gael Ortega, and myself were the only ones who knew. We couldn't risk bringing anyone else into this. I wanted to bring Chloe into it as well at first, because I thought I could trust her, but Tony and Gael overruled me." He shot a quick look at Chloe before turning back to Bill. "Go on."

"After Amador double-crossed her, Nina knew that if she went back to LA, you would kill her. Unfortunately, before we could transport her to headquarters, you got to her." Bill shook his head. "You know what happened after that."

Tony leaned back in his chair. "So if Nina was so important to your operation, why did you leave her in prison all those years?"

"It was her decision to stay there, Tony. The prison she was being held in also was home to two of Liddy's closest associates- men he had trusted implicitly. She was able to get close to them, and get information, which she passed onto us through one of the guards. Then 3 years ago, we decided to have her broken out, so she could continue her work outside of prison, and help us stage Chloe's death. And ever since then, she's been here working for us." Bill finally sat down. "Look, I know this is hard for you two to believe, but it's the truth. Nina Myers is a patriot, not a traitor. She has been 100 loyal to this country her entire life." He stared down the two former agents. "I've told you everything I can. Now you need to make a decision- are you going to help us?"

"You're right, Bill. It is hard to believe." Tony stood up. "And I for one still don't trust her. But if this Steel Rose organization is as dangerous as you say it is, then it doesn't matter. I'll help you bring them down."

"Thank you, Tony." Bill grasped Tony's hand, shaking it firmly. "What about you, Jack?"

Jack stared at him for long minutes, his expression hard. "...Even if what you're saying is true, it doesn't change the fact that she killed my wife, and tried to kill my daughter. Nor does it change the fact that you led me to believe the woman I love was dead." He scratched his chin. "But Chloe has done more to help me out than just about anyone else I've ever known. I owe her my life. For that reason, and that reason alone, I will help you. But after this, I don't ever want to see either of you again."

"Fine." Bill went to shake his hand as well, but Jack brushed him off. "Just keep me informed" he snapped, storming out. Chloe made a move to stop him, but he ignored her. She looked down at the ground, her shoulders dropping. Tony put his hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up. "Just give him time, Chloe. He's got a lot to deal with right now."

"I know." Chloe glanced over at Bill. "Look, Tony, why don't you show Jack where he's going to be staying? I need to talk to Bill."

"All right." He left to hunt down Jack and Chloe sank down into the nearest chair, burying her face in her hands.

"Are you okay, Chloe?"

"No, I'm not. I knew he was going to be angry, but I didn't think it would be that bad." She scoffed. "Can you blame him, though? We hurt him, Bill, badly. We lied to him. I lied to him."

"Chloe, you did what you had to do."

"That doesn't make it any easier." Chloe looked up at the older man. "Jack was the best thing that ever happened to me, and I threw what we had together away. And for what?" She shook her head. "Bill, we're no closer to taking Steel Rose down than we were 3 years ago, despite everything we've done. And all that time, I was forced to deceive the man I love into believing that I was dead. He's never going to forgive me for that."

"Do you feel like you've wasted the last 3 years of your life?"

Chloe nodded. "Yeah, a little bit."

Bill merely bent down next to her. "I know you're discouraged right now, Chloe. And I know how bad things might look. But you can't lose faith in what you're doing. That's what they want." He brushed away a stray tear that had rolled down her cheek. "Besides, I know Jack, almost as well as you do. He's upset right now. But he still cares about you."

She looked away, knowing Bill was right. _Bill's right. I can't lose sight of what we're doing._ "Thank you, Bill. And you're right. I need to stay focused on why we're here. That's the most important thing. Whatever happens with Jack, happens."

He gave her a knowing look. "Good. Because we can't do this without you, Chloe." He turned to the door as one of his agents came in. "What is it, Gary?"

"Sir, General Walton is on the line for you. He says it's urgent. And Myers and her team just checked in."

"Thank you, Gary." Bill turned back to Chloe. "Chloe, go talk to Nina, see what she found out at the location."

"I'm on it." She stood up. "Do you want me to tell her Jack's here?"

"Yes. I think it would be better if she found out before she saw Jack."

"All right." She left the conference room, walking briskly towards the south entrance of the building. Nina was heading in her direction. _I hope she found something useful._ "Hello, Nina."

"Chloe." Nina grasped her hand.

"Did you get Sorensen?"

"No. The place was almost deserted. The men they left behind didn't tell us anything about Sorensen's operation." She pulled a hard drive out of her bag. "Kerrison found this hidden in the walls. It's been damaged, but there might be something on there worth checking out."

Chloe took the hard drive. "All right. I'll have James see what he can pull off of it. Good work, Nina."

"Thanks, Chloe."

Chloe nodded, then glanced behind her. "Nina... Jack's here."

The other woman stood still, her face growing pale. "You brought Jack here?"

"Yeah. Bill and I decided it was time to bring him into this."

Nina looked behind her, her eyes searching for him. "How could you bring him here? He hates me, Chloe. And for good reason. I killed his wife. I betrayed him. He's going to kill me the first chance he gets."

Chloe shook her head. "We told Jack the truth. He knows why you did it. And he's agreed to help us."

"What's to stop him from killing me once this is over?"

"...I don't know. Lay low for a couple days. Don't give him any more reason to come after you. We'll figure something out. But for now, go get some rest." Chloe watched her leave, then leaned against the wall, rubbing her forehead. _Things just got a lot more complicated. If I know Jack, he's not going to care what Nina's done for us. He'll still go after her. Of course, who could blame him? Even if she was keeping her cover, she did kill his wife. But we need them to be able to work together if we're going to bring down Steel Rose._

Stifling a yawn, she looked at her watch. _2 AM? I've been on duty for almost 72 hours straight. Bill's gonna be pissed when he finds out. And I am not in the mood for another one of his "You need to get more sleep, Chloe" lectures right now. I'll worry about Jack later. For now, I'm getting some sleep._


	4. I don't trust you

Chapter 4

"Welcome back, Jack." Tony greeted Jack as he walked through the western entrance ahead of his support team.

"Thanks, Tony." Jack ran his fingers through his hair. "Damn rain. Almost wrecked on the way here."

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

"Good. Listen, Bill and Chloe are waiting for you in the situation room. Nina's going to be joining in on this also."

Jack scowled at the mention of Nina. "Why is she going to be there?"

"I have no idea. Bill just told me to tell you."

"Fine. Let's get this over with." Jack followed Tony down the corridor, stopping outside the sit room. Chloe was inside, Bill right by her side. They were pouring over what looked like a briefing of some sort. Despite his desire to get the meeting over with, Jack found himself staring at Chloe.

_Chloe's so different than I remember. She's so confident. Before she disappeared, she was so miserable, so... unsure of herself. Other than computers, of course. Brilliant at that, but... definitely not a leader. Now she is, just like I always knew she could be. And she's even more beautiful than before._

Jack scowled at himself. _What am I doing? I can't think like that. She deceived me. She hurt me. I will never forgive her for that. _Shaking his head, he walked into the situation room, sitting down next to Tony. They were soon joined by Nina, who looked away once she saw Jack glaring at her.

"All right, let's begin" Bill said, getting Jack's attention. "Jack, did you find out anything about Sorensen's location?"

"Not yet. We brought back some chips we believe have intel on them relating to Sorensen. And Agent Kerrison is still on site, interrogating the man we arrested, but so far, he's given us nothing."

"He's not going to give us anything" Nina replied. Jack turned to glare at her. "Think about it, Jack. From what we know about Steel Rose, anyone that works for them is 100 dedicated to the cause. They're fanatics. That man will die before he talks."

"And I suppose you're the expert, Nina" Jack snapped.

"I never claimed to be an expert, Jack. I'm just saying-"

"I think it's clear what you're saying."

"Enough!" Bill stepped in between the arguing agents. Both went silent. Bill shot each of them a harsh stare before turning to Chloe. "Chloe, what do you think?"

Chloe glanced down at the briefing she had received earlier. "Since Sorensen wasn't at the location, that leaves us with at least 10 other probable locations where he could be. And since our primary efforts were focused on the location Jack was at, we haven't had time to vet the other ones. That's gonna take some time."

"How much time?"

She thought for a few seconds. "A few days at least. We might be able to have something sooner if we can pull anything off the chips Jack found."

"All right." Bill moved to the front of the table. "I cannot emphasize how important it is that we catch this guy. He is our best chance at finding Liddy. Nothing is more important than that. Now let's get back to work."

Jack stood up, preparing to leave, but Bill stopped him and Nina. "Listen, you two. I can't have you arguing with each other like that. Whatever problems you might have with each other, I need you to put them on hold until this is over. You have got to start working together if we're going to bring down Steel Rose. Do you understand?"

"Fine" Nina replied.

"...Fine" Jack grudgingly agreed.

"Good. Now get back to work." Bill watched them leave, then turned to Chloe. "That was too easy."

"I know. Jack's not just going to drop this. He's still going to go after her."

"And that can't happen."

Chloe nodded. "I'll have Kerrison keep an eye on him for a while. And if that doesn't work, I'll talk to Jack myself."

2424242424

Jack ducked behind a support beam, narrowly missing the eyes of a passing security guard. He waited until the guard had passed, then stepped out, his eyes searching for any more guards. T_his place sure does have a lot of guards. But then again, it is a top secret special ops center, and one that actually seems to know what it's doing. Which is more than I can say for other places I've worked._

Hearing the footsteps of an approaching guard, Jack leaned back against the wall, waiting for him to pass. _It won't be long before they find out where I am. I can't keep running into these guards. I have to get to Nina._ _This might be my only chance. But then again, I've been waiting two months for a shot at her._

Once the second guard had passed, Jack resumed his slow walk towards his target. He stopped in front of a door at the end of the corridor. Drawing his weapon, he entered the room. Nina was working at her desk, oblivious to her surroundings. Jack snuck up behind her and placed his hand over her mouth, pressing his weapon into her back. "You even think about raising your voice, and I will kill you right now. Do you understand me?" he growled at her.

Nina nodded, and Jack took his hand off her mouth, spinning her around to face him.

"You've come to kill me, haven't you?" she asked quietly.

"...No. Not tonight."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I didn't want you to think anything had changed." Jack shifted his weapon to his other hand. "Bill and Chloe might believe you're on our side, but I don't. I don't trust you. And I will never forgive you for killing Teri. You killed my wife, the mother of my child."

"I'm sorry about Teri, Jack. I really am. But I needed to keep my cover intact. She would have blown it."

"And that's just supposed to make everything better?"

"No." Jack frowned slightly as he saw a flash of regret cross her face. "It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. Despite what happened between us, I never wanted to hurt her."

"But you did. Damnit, Nina, you ruined my life. And for what? Your cover got blown anyway. Teri died for nothing."

"And what about you, Jack?" she asked. "What about when you executed Ryan Chappelle? You murdered him."

"That was different" he hissed. "Saunders would have released the virus if I didn't. Millions of people would have died."

"And how many would have died if I hadn't have done my job? Jack, I hated doing some of the things I've done. And I know nothing I can do or say will ever change how much you hate me. But I knew what I was getting myself into when I signed up for this."

Jack merely holstered his weapon. "Fine. I'll accept that... for now. This operation is more important. And Bill is right. We need to start working together, and we need to do it now. Truce?" He stuck out his hand.

Nina stared at him, then shook his hand firmly. "Truce."

He pulled her close before she could let go. "But once this is over, I am going to spend the rest of my life hunting you down. And I will not stop until I kill you. Understand?"

"Yes."

"Good." Jack let go and turned around, leaving the room quietly.

2424242424

Jack looked up from his screen, rubbing his tired eyes. _How people manage to sit in front of a computer screen all day every day for years is beyond me. I think I'd go crazy if I did._ He saw Chloe pacing around the main floor, talking into her cell phone, her long brown hair flowing freely behind her. She hung up, her expression softening as she saw Jack staring at her. Jack felt his heart start to beat faster, and he turned away, getting up from his chair and walking quickly off the main floor and into the break room. Fortunately for him, it was deserted, and he leaned against the wall, willing his heart to slow down. _That's it. Just take it easy. Deep breaths._

"Jack, are you okay?"

Jack turned around to see Chloe standing behind him, looking concerned.

"I'm fine. Just needed a bit of a break, that's all." _She lied to you. Remember that._ To Jack's chagrin, however, the anger that he had once felt at that thought had faded, far beyond his reach.

"Well, so do I." She glanced around awkwardly. "Look, Jack, we... haven't really had a chance to talk since..."

"Since the day you went underground" Jack finished for her.

"Yeah. I know you're angry that I lied to you. But having you believe I was dead was the only way I could stay alive. I had to-"

"Chloe" Jack interrupted, raising his hand to cut her off. "I'm not angry. I- I was at first, but not anymore. I know why you did it. I guess I was just... hurt that you didn't tell me what you were planning, that you couldn't trust me."

"I wanted to, Jack. It was killing me not being able to tell you the truth. But Bill thought it would be better if I didn't."

"You don't have to explain it to me." Jack sighed. "You know, some days I- I hardly recognize you. You've changed so much in the last 3 years."

"Yeah, I... guess I have." Chloe looked down. "Do you think that's bad?"

"No. No, it's not bad, Chloe. It's just taken me some time to get used to, that's all. You look... so confident, so in control, like whatever was holding you back before is gone."

"I feel in control. I feel like- like I could do anything. And it's all because of Bill."

Jack was confused. "What do you mean?"

"When I first came here, I was so terrified. Everything had changed for me so quickly. I knew it was coming, but I was still scared. The first few days were the worst. I was so afraid of making a mistake, and no one here trusted me, except for Bill. I had to work to gain their acceptance, and I was failing miserably at it. I thought I had made a huge mistake working here. I was ready to quit, lock myself in my quarters for the rest of my life."

"Bill pulled me aside and told me that I was putting too much pressure on myself. He told me that I should stop worrying about making mistakes, and just do my job. He said the reason he had brought me here, and not Headquarters, was because he trusted me completely, that I was the best at what I did. That was enough for me to realize how stupid I was being. He took all the pressure off."

"After that, I just did my job. The systems we had were not nearly good enough, so I had to replace them with ones that could do what we needed. But apparently that wasn't what Bill had in mind for me when he brought me in, because about a month later, he started asking me for advice on stuff that wasn't technology-related."

"What kind of things?" Jack questioned.

"Simple stuff at first. Mostly things that weren't related to what we were doing. But that quickly changed. He kept coming to me, asking me what I would do in certain situations. I wasn't sure what he was trying to do, so I called him on it one day. He said that his second in command had been killed weeks before on an undercover mission, and he wanted me to take her place."

"And you agreed."

Chloe shook her head. "Not right away. I told him I would consider it and get back to him. That was a hard decision for me, Jack. I had always been the one taking orders from people, not giving them out. Even back at CTU, when I ran a single department. But after I thought about it, I realized that I was the best person for the job. That's when I said I would do it. And ever since then I've been helping Bill run this place."

She bit off a laugh. "It took some getting used to, that's for sure. I still remember the first time he left me in charge of this substation. I was scared, Jack, afraid that I might totally blow it, that Bill's faith in me was misplaced. But once again, I was wrong. I could do the job. And fortunately for the both of us, nothing serious happened. I kept the place from falling apart. That's all I can ask for, really. It's still Bill's show. I'm just a fill-in."

Jack gave her a look. "That's the old Chloe talking. I've watched you the last two months. You are more than capable of leading this place. And don't believe for a second that that was all Bill."

"Wasn't it?" she shot back. "He's the one who made me what I am today."

"That's not true. Chloe, Bill might have taught you a few things, but real leadership can't be taught. It has to come from within."

"I don't know about that" Chloe remarked quietly.

Jack took her hand in his own. "Chloe, do you know why I never fired you, even when I probably should have? Why I always went to you for help when I needed it?"

"Because I was good at my job. And I was the only one who would help you."

He shook his head. "That's part of it, but not everything. You've always had the potential to be a great leader. Even when I first met you, I could see it. I wanted to see that potential come to the surface. But something was holding it back. It was like you were afraid to let that come out, that you were content with taking orders, even if you didn't always follow them." He looked down, releasing her hand. "Listen, Chloe, about what I said before, not wanting to see you again-"

"Jack, it's all right. I hurt you when I went underground. You had every right to say what you did."

"But I still shouldn't have said it."

"Jack, I-"

"Chloe, there you are." Chloe and Jack turned around to see Nina standing behind them. She gazed at the two of them suspiciously. "I'm sorry, was this a bad time?"

"No, it's fine. What is it?"

"We found Sorensen."

"You found him? Where is he?"

Nina handed Chloe a sheet of paper. "An industrial park 15 miles from here."

Chloe scanned the document briefly. "Do we have satellite coverage?"

"Hawkins is setting it up. She said she'd have it available in a couple minutes. So what's the gameplan?"

Chloe went pale. "Oh, no. I forgot Bill's still at Headquarters. He said he wouldn't be back for another couple of days. Which means..."

Jack quickly put the pieces together. "You have to lead this operation."


	5. Time to die

Chapter 5

Chloe fought to control her rapidly beating heart as the reality of the situation began to sink in. _Oh my god. I have to do this. It's on me. Our most important operation, and I have to lead it._

Jack grew concerned as he watched Chloe struggle with the responsibility that had been suddenly thrust on her. _This is not good._ He turned to Nina. "Give us a moment."

"Jack-"

"Nina, please."

"Fine." She left to return to the floor. Once she was gone, Jack turned back to Chloe. "Chloe, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

She merely looked at him, her fear showing clearly. "Jack, I... I don't know if I can do this."

"What are you talking about?"

"Sorensen is the second in command of Steel Rose. If we catch him, we can get to Liddy, and finally take down Steel Rose for good."

"Yeah, I know. We go in and get him. So what's the problem?"

She let out a shaky breath. "I've never lead an operation this big before. Bill was always the one who handled the major operations. But now it's on me. What if I blow it? We might not get another shot at him if I blow this."

Jack put his hand on her shoulder. "Chloe, listen to me. Bill would have known this could happen. Do you think he would have left you in charge if he didn't think you were capable of handling things?"

"Yeah, but-"

"No buts, Chloe. There is no one else here who can do this. You have to be the one. And you will. You just need to believe you can. Because I do."

Chloe looked into his eyes, seeing the conviction in them, her doubts slowly fading away. _Jack is right. I'm just being stupid. This is on me, and I can't just sit here and whine. I can do this. I need to do this._ She looked away for a second, then turned back to him. Jack smiled slightly as he saw the change in her demeanor. The fear and doubt she had been feeling was gone. "Thanks, Jack."

"You're welcome." He opened the door. "Let's go get this guy."

2424242424

"All right, listen up!"

Jack looked up from the weapon he was checking to see Chloe standing in the entrance to the armory. The rest of his team immediately went silent, their attention totally focused on her. She walked to the center of the room, stopping a few feet from Jack. "Your objective is to apprehend Gustave Sorensen. His current location is Centerfield Industrial Park, 15 miles from here. Agent Bauer" she nodded to Jack "will be the lead operative on the ground. You'll receive further instructions once you've reached the location." She looked each agent in the eye. "This man must be apprehended alive. There is zero room for error. Is that understood?"

"Yes, ma'am" the agents replied.

"Good. Move out." Chloe watched as the teams began to file out. She stopped Jack as he was about to leave. "Jack... please be careful."

"I will."

"And please don't go after Nina. I know you don't trust her, but she's one of the best we have."

Jack looked at her. "Don't worry, Chloe- I'm not going to go after her until the job is done."

Chloe looked unconvinced. "Fine." She watched Jack leave, then pulled out her cell phone, attaching a scrambler to the bottom before dialing. "Operations."

"It's Phoenix. Put me through to Buchanan. Priority 1."

"One moment." Chloe began to pace the now empty room.

"This is Buchanan. What's going on, Chloe?"

"Bill, we found Sorensen."

"You found him? Where was he?"

"Centerfield Industrial Park. I've sent 3 teams to apprehend him. Jack's the lead on this one."

"Good." Bill frowned. "Did you send Nina as well?"

Chloe hesitated. "...Yeah, I did."

"What?" he spat out incredulously. "How could you send the two of them out together? What were you thinking, Chloe?"

She flinched at his tone, but quickly recovered. "I didn't have a choice, Bill. This might be the only chance we get to catch Sorensen, and I was not about to blow it by not sending our best agents to get him."

"Chloe-"

"With all due respect, Bill, you left me in command. I made a decision that I believed was the right one to make. If something goes wrong, then I'll take the heat for it. But right now I have to get ready for this operation."

"...Fine. It looks like right now we don't have a choice. But I want to be patched in on this."

"I'll take care of it."

"Chloe? This had better work."

"It will." Chloe hung up, tossing her phone down on the table. _He still doesn't trust me to lead this place when he's gone. I didn't want to send Nina out with Jack, but this was too good of an opportunity to pass up._ She rubbed her eyes wearily. _We're going to have to talk when he gets back from Headquarters._

Her phone beeped, and she scooped it up. "Yeah?"

"It's Tony. The teams are almost at the location. We need you out here."

"I'll be right there." _Time to go to work._

2424242424

Kerrison sat back in his seat as the lead vehicle stopped a while away from their target, his eyes squarely on the man sitting in the seat in front of him. _"Keep Jack Bauer away from Nina Myers" she says. So not only do I have to do my job and help catch Sorensen, I have to keep Bauer away from Myers in the process. Great. _He scowled. _What's so special about Jack Bauer, anyway? The way Mr. Buchanan and Ms. O'Brian talked about him, you'd think he was some kind of superman. But what has he done since they brought him in? Nothing that any of us couldn't do._

"Agent Kerrison, are you going to join us?" Jack's voice snapped from outside. Kerrison shook his head to clear it, climbing out of the vehicle quickly, and Jack gave him a glare before continuing. "As I was saying, there's no way we're going to be able to sneak up on him. There aren't any blind spots we could approach from. The best option is going through the south entrance, and hopefully take them by some surprise."

"A frontal assault?"

"That's our best move."

Kerrison glanced at the map. "Maybe not" he remarked, pointing at a section of the map. "There's a sewer line that runs underneath the building. We can send a team through there, take them by surprise."

Jack nodded in agreement. "Good idea." He turned to the rest of the teams. "Teams A and B will storm the northern doors, drawing their attention. Team C will come up through the sewer line and apprehend the target. Agent Kerrison, I want you to lead that team."

Kerrison merely looked at him. _Not good. Gotta think fast._ "Sir, I think we'd have a better chance of success if you lead the 3rd team."

Jack glared at him. "I don't want any arguments, Agent Kerrison. I gave you an order."

"He's right, Jack" Nina replied. Jack turned to glare at her. "Come on, you have more experience in covert entry than the rest of us. It makes sense for you to do this."

"...All right. I will lead Team C. Now get ready." Jack watched the teams leave the staging area to get into position before switching on his comm unit. "Homebase, this is Bauer. Do you copy?"

"You're coming in loud and clear, Jack" Chloe answered, turning to her lead tactical. "Charlie, do you have the link to Headquarters up yet?"

"Yes, ma'am. We've patched them in."

"Good. Jack, how soon can you launch?"

"Five minutes."

"Let me know when you're ready to move in." Chloe switched to a secondary channel. "Bill, do you copy?"

"I'm here. General Walton's on the line as well."

_Oh, great. It's bad enough Bill's on this, but the general as well? Jack, you had better not blow this._ "Okay. You should be patched in on comm."

"All right. Have the teams move in as soon as possible."

"They already know to do that, Bill" Chloe snapped.

"Watch your tone, O'Brian" Walton barked out.

_Oh, crap. Bad move there, Chloe._ "Yes, general" she replied, her tone more civil. "I've already given them orders to move in quickly. With any luck, we should take them by surprise."

"This is Bauer" Jack's voice sounded. "Teams are in position. Two hostiles guarding the main entrance. Charges are set."

"Confirmed. Jack, move in now."

"Teams A and B, move in now." He waited as the first 2 teams opened fire on their target. _Just a few more seconds._

"This is Myers. We're pinned down, taking heavy fire. Jack, if you're going to do something, do it now."

Jack signaled to the agent on his right, who hit the trigger. He was thrown back as the grate exploded. "Move."

2424242424

Jack leaned up against the wall as a group of hostiles passed his position. _This place is like a maze._

"What's your status, Jack?" Chloe asked.

"Still no sign of Sorensen. I'm about 3 feet from the central control unit." He checked around for any more hostiles. "It's clear. Moving in now." He slowly inched towards the door, opening it cautiously and stepping in.

"Don't move." Jack heard the click of a gun, and he put his hands up. "Now slowly, put your weapon down, and turn around." He did as he was ordered.

"You should have stayed out of this, Jack."

Jack stared at the figure in disgust. "Christopher."

Henderson smirked. "That's right. I have to say I'm surprised to see you doing Prime Directive's dirty work."

"I don't have time for this. Where's Sorensen?"

"You mean you haven't figured it out? You're looking at him."

Jack's eyes darted towards the weapon Henderson was holding. "Don't even think about it. Back up against the wall." Jack slowly backed up until he was pressed against the back wall.

"Christopher, why are you doing this?"

"I'm trying to protect this country."

"How? By killing innocent civilians? How many people have lost their lives because of what you've done?"

"There's always casualties in war, Jack, and this is war." Henderson looked him over. "Like I told you, I'm surprised to see you even functioning. Last I heard, you were a sniveling wreck."

"Shut up" Jack growled.

"They really must have done a number on you, if you're working for them after what happened to your girlfriend."

"You son of a bitch!" Jack's outburst caused Henderson to step back. "Chloe gave her life to stop what you were doing!"

"And what good did that do?" The former agent smirked at Jack. "She's still alive, isn't she?"

"What are you talking about?"

"O'Brian. She's still alive. The accident 3 years ago was just a ruse, wasn't it?"

"How dare you" Jack snapped.

"Drop the act, Jack. Prime Directive's stunt might have fooled Jonathan, but it won't work on me. Besides, you won't live long enough to spoil what's coming next." Henderson advanced on Jack, stopping a foot away. Jack, seeing no options, merely stared at his former mentor.

"Don't worry. You'll see your girlfriend soon enough. Now it's time for you to die, Jack."

2424242424

"Dammit!" Chloe yelled out as the comm feed was lost. "Charlie, get that feed back up now!"

"I'm trying, Ms. O'Brian!" Hawkins answered, her fingers flying over her keyboard. "They're jamming our feed somehow. I can't get anything."

"Boost the signal. Maybe we can break through."

"We're already at full capacity. We turn it up any further, we could blow the main processor."

"Do it, Charlie! That's an order!"

Tony put his hand on her arm. "Chloe, you need to calm down. Losing control is not going to help the situation."

Chloe shook him off. "I am not losing control, Tony."

"Look, Chloe, I know how you feel. But Jack can take care of himself."

"This is not about Jack! We have over 3 dozen agents out there, and we just lost our link to them!"

"Chloe, what the hell's going on?" Bill called out from the secondary channel. "What happened?"

"We lost our comm feed, Bill. We're trying to get it back up."

"You lost it? How the hell could you let that happen, O'Brian?" Walton barked out.

"It doesn't matter how it happened, general" Tony replied.

"I didn't ask for your opinion, Almeida."

"Tony, stay out of this" Chloe hissed. "We're doing the best we can here, general."

"Don't give me excuses. Get that comm feed up now, O'Brian!"

Chloe marched over to Hawkins' station, moving the startled analyst aside. She began typing rapidly. "Come on, come on... there we go."

_"... soon enough. Now it's time for you to die, Jack."_ Two gunshots were heard before the feed was cut off.


	6. Aftermath

Chapter 6

"Now it's time for you to die, Jack."

Jack stared into the barrel of Henderson's weapon, his heart pounding. He closed his eyes, flinching as he heard two shots fired.

"Jack, are you okay?"

Jack opened his eyes to see Nina standing in front of him, her weapon pointed at the struggling Henderson, who was being subdued by several agents. _Nina saved my life. Henderson would have killed me if she hadn't have gotten here in time._ "I'm fine" he said brusquely, retrieving his own weapon. "Secure him and prep him for transport back to Homebase. Sweep the building. If you find anything, make sure it gets uploaded. Move, now."

"Jack, what is going on here?" Nina asked him once they were alone. "Why was Christopher Henderson here? Where's Sorensen?"

"Henderson was Sorensen. At least that's what he claimed."

"You think he was lying?"

"...I'm not sure" Jack admitted. "I want to believe he was, that he was here to throw us off the trail. But I don't think he was."

"How can you be sure?"

"I can't. Not yet, anyway." Jack touched his comm unit. "Homebase, this is Bauer. Do you copy?" He frowned as he received no response. "Homebase, this is Bauer. Come in." No response. "Dammit, comm's out." He pulled out his phone. "No service? We're in range. What the hell is going on?"

"We lost contact with Homebase a few minutes ago. Somehow they're blocking our communications."

"Dammit. All right, I want you to stay here, see what you can find. I'm going to escort Henderson back to Homebase for interrogation. Right now he's the only one who can lead us to Liddy."

"You think he's going to give Liddy up?"

Jack reloaded his weapon. "He will. I'll make sure of it."

2424242424

Chloe stared blankly at the monitor in front of her, her heart racing. _This can't be happening. He can't be gone._

"Chloe?" Tony reached out and grabbed her shoulder. "Chloe, come on. There's nothing you can do."

"Get away from me" she warned him.

"Chloe, don't do this. Jack wouldn't want you-"

"I said, get away from me! Don't touch me!" She pushed him away roughly. "Come on, Jack. Answer me. Please."

"Chloe! If you can't keep yourself together, then maybe you should stand down." He led her away from the floor, despite her protests. "Chloe, listen. I know exactly how you feel right now. But you have a job to do. There are almost 40 other agents out there who are counting on us to get them what they need. You have to think about more than just Jack right now."

_He's right. I'm not being objective here. I can't worry about Jack. He's more than capable of taking care of himself._ "You can let go of me now." She removed his hand.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. And you were right, Tony. Thank you." Chloe moved past Tony and back onto the floor. "Any luck getting comm back up?"

"No, ma'am. We're still being blocked."

"Keep working on it. We need to know what's going on over there."

"Ms. O'Brian!" Chloe turned to Hawkins. "I saved that last bit of audio we got."

"Good. Play it back, see if there's anything you can pull off of it."

Hawkins punched in a few keys. "There we go."

_"Now it's time for you to die, Jack."_

_Wait a minute. I know that voice. But from where?_ "Play it again." Chloe turned up the volume on her earpiece.

_"Now it's time for you to die, Jack." Oh, my god. It's Henderson._ She looked over at Tony, who was staring at the monitor in shock.

"Do you need me to play it again?"

Chloe shook her head. "No, not yet. Just focus on getting past that block." Her phone rang. "Yeah?"

"Chloe, it's Nina."

"Nina, what the hell is going on over there?"

"This was a setup. They knew we were coming, so they jammed our comm units. We just now disabled the jamming frequency, but it'll take some time to get comm back online."

"Nina... did Jack- is Jack okay?"

"Chloe, relax" Nina reassured her. "Jack's fine. He's on his way back to Homebase."

_Thank god._ "All right. Get back to me as soon as you have anything." She dialed Jack's number.

"This is Bauer."

"Jack... are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Jack glanced back at Henderson. "We'll be there in 20 minutes. I need an interrogation room set up, full package."

"So you managed to apprehend Henderson?"

Jack frowned. "How did you know-"

"-about Henderson? We got an audio fragment of him talking to you at the location, and I recognized his voice. He's the one we've been looking for, isn't he?"

"Yes, he is." He sighed. "When I get back to Homebase, you and I need to talk."

"About the mission?"

"Not just that. He knows about you."

"Knows about me? What are you-" Chloe paled. "Dammit. How did he find out?"

"He figured it out." Jack shifted in his seat. "I'll explain everything when I get back." He hung up.

"That was your girlfriend, wasn't it?" Henderson remarked.

"Shut up, Christopher" Jack barked.

"Of course it was. You know, Jonathan was shortsighted enough to believe someone that high up in Prime Directive would let themselves be killed. I never bought it, though. Even someone as pathetic as O'Brian could easily get out of that situation."

"You son of a bitch. How dare you. How dare you. Don't you ever insult Chloe like that. She is more of a patriot than you will ever be."

"That's your opinion." Henderson shook his head. "You're making a mistake, Jack. You're fighting on the wrong side. Your father and brother were smart enough to join us, but you just had to buy into the lies those incompetents told you."

"That's enough!" Kerrison smashed him in the back of the head, knocking him out.

"Stand down, Agent Kerrison!" Jack yelled at him.

"I'm sorry, sir, but no one insults Prime Directive like that."

Jack glared at him. "Make sure he's secured. And then keep your hands off him until we get back to Homebase."

2424242424

"What the hell were you thinking, O'Brian?! Not only did you endanger the life of one of our best operatives by sending her on a mission with a man who wants her dead, you couldn't even stay in control!"

Chloe visibly recoiled at Walton's harsh tone. "I know I screwed up, General, but-"

"Yes, you did! And it almost cost us our opportunity to apprehend Steel Rose's second in command!"

"But it didn't" she replied. "We still captured him. And we only sustained minimal casualties doing so. I ordered Agent Kerrison to make sure that Jack and Nina were kept apart, and he did that." Her phone beeped. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Ms. O'Brian, but you wanted me to let you know when Agent Bauer returned."

"Thank you, Charlie. Send Jack up here." She turned back to the head of Prime Directive. "Jack's going to join us in a couple minutes."

"Good. He has a lot to answer for" Walton replied.

"Chloe, what's going on?" Jack asked, entering the conference room.

"Sit down, Agent Bauer."

"Tell me what's going on" he answered, shooting the general a harsh stare.

"Jack, please. Just do it" Chloe whispered. Jack sat down.

"I'm not going to mince words here, Agent Bauer. I read Agent Kerrison's report. You needlessly risked the lives of our agents by authorizing a frontal assault on a heavily guarded position, and you ordered him away from your position, leaving you and Agent Myers alone together."

"General, what are you trying to say?"

"I think you know, Bauer. Your history with Myers isn't a secret. You wanted to use the firefight as a distraction to kill her, make it look like she was killed in the attack. Do you deny it?"

"Yes, I do!" Jack snapped, standing up quickly. "If I was going to kill Nina, I would have done it by now. But all I care about right now is stopping Steel Rose from hurting this country. And if you know my history with Nina, then you'll know that I've had several opportunities to kill her, and I haven't. If doing my job means working with someone I hate, then that's what I'll do."

Walton stared at him for a minute. "All right. I'll accept that for now. I'm sending Bill back to take over. And I want to know the instant you get anything on Liddy. We'll deal with your screwups later." He disconnected the call.

"Arrogant son of a bitch" Jack barked out.

"Let it go" Chloe told him.

"I'm not going to let it go. We both did our jobs."

"And I screwed up. Please, Jack, let me deal with General Walton."

Jack nodded. "Fine." He stepped back as Chloe wrapped her arms around him. "What are you doing?"

"I-I thought you were dead. I thought Henderson had..." She pulled away and slapped him. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!"

He ducked his head. "I'm sorry, Chloe. I didn't mean to scare you." He sat down. "Look, we need to talk. Despite everything that's happened, I... I still love you. Even when I was angry at you, I never stopped loving you. And... once this mission is over, I want to leave this, like we were going to years ago."

Chloe frowned. "You mean, you want me to give up working for Prime Directive? Go back to civilian life?" She shook her head. "I wish I could, Jack. But it's not that easy."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm supposed to be dead, remember? Besides, even if we bring down Liddy and his whole organization, what's to stop them from hunting me down once I leave? I told you how many times they've tried to kill me. They can't get to me here. I step outside this building, and I'll be dead in a week, 2 weeks tops."

"That is not going to happen" Jack replied forcefully.

"I'm sorry, Jack. I can't. Not yet." Chloe sighed. "Did you have Henderson put in Holding?"

"Yes. We'll let him sit for a while, then I'll go see what he knows."

"You know we're taking a risk here" she stated. "Remember what happened the last time you interrogated him. We can't afford another mistake, not when we're so close to our goal. I can't let him down again."

"Let who down?"

Chloe quickly looked away. "Never mind."

"Chloe-"

"Drop it, Jack."

"...It's about the general, isn't it? Why do you let him treat you like that?"

"I said drop it! It has nothing to do with you, so stay out of this. All you should be concerned about is breaking Henderson, not what's going on between me and the general." She pushed past him and left the conference room in a hurry.

2424242424

"Bill, I need to talk to you."

Bill looked up from his desk. "Have you made any progress with Henderson?"

Jack shook his head. "No. He's not saying a word. And I don't think he's going to."

"Try pushing him harder."

"If I did that, it could kill him. Agent Cole is still working on him, though." He rubbed his hands. "That's not what I need to talk to you about."

"Jack, what's going on?"

"It's about Chloe. I haven't seen her since we brought Henderson in the other day. Where is she?"

"General Walton confined her to quarters for violating protocol."

"Confined her to quarters?" Jack spat out. "He's sidelining Chloe because of what she did? Sending both Nina and myself out on a mission? Bill, Nina saved my life, and he's punishing Chloe for that? It's wrong and you know it."

"I'm not happy about it either, Jack, but my hands are tied here" Bill replied. "Whether we agree with his decision or not, he runs this organization."

"That doesn't give him the right to treat Chloe the way he has."

"Jack, stop" Bill warned him. "You're talking about things that don't concern you."

"I think it does. He treats her like crap. Why does she put up with it?"

Bill sighed. "It's not my place to say. If you really want to know, talk to Chloe about it."

"Dammit, Bill-"

Bill put his hand up. "This discussion is over. You're dismissed."


End file.
